by Staff WritersBerlin (UPI) Oct 15, 2010
Two German satellites orbiting within 380 yards of each other are preparing to create the most detailed map ever made of Earth's entire surface, officials said.

The radar satellites TanDEM-X and TerraSAR-X will make 3-D maps of the surface as they orbit the globe, sweeping around the planet at more than 14,000 mph, the BBC reported.

TerraSAR-X was launched in 2007 and TanDEM-X was put in orbit in June, then slowly brought closer and closer to its companion.

The final maneuvers to bring them together were made step-by-step over the past week, German space agency officials said.

"It's tricky and I must confess we've all been a bit nervous," Manfred Zink said.

The two satellites will soon begin observations to measure the variation in height across the globe to an accuracy of around 6 feet, the BBC said.

'A-Train' Satellites Search For 770 Million Tons Of Dust In The AirHuntsville AL (SPX) Oct 08, 2010
Using data from several research satellites, scientists will spend the next three years trying to understand the climate impacts of about 770 million tons of dust carried into the atmosphere every year from the Sahara Desert.
Some Saharan dust falls back to Earth before it leaves Africa. Some of it streams out over the Atlantic Ocean or Mediterranean Sea, carried on the wind as far away as ... read more

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